Q7: My CCTV system will hold the recorded video only for a few days. What shall I do to increase the time the recorded video is saved for?

A: CCTV systems will incorporate an internal storage, usually a hard disk drive, to save the recorded video. There are several ways to increase the storage capacity of the system, as described below:

a. Increase the storage media. Add extra hard disc drives if the CCTV recorder (DVR or NVR) will support that. This will not be costly but the cost will depend on the capacity of the disc you will need.
b. If the CCTV is recording at FULL resolution, decrease the resolution to the minimum acceptable level. Keep in mind that this will have a negative impact on playback quality.
c. If you are using Mjpeg-4 compression mode or older, change to H.264 or newer (if you recorder supports that). This might have a negative impact on playback quality and might also slow down the performance of the recorder.
d. If you are recording is set on continuous mode recording, change to Motion detection mode or schedule your recording according to your needs. Although this will save you storage space, it increases the chance of losing useful recordings.

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